Multi-semiconductor material vertical memory strings, strings of memory cells having individually biasable channel regions, memory arrays incorporating such strings, and methods of accessing and forming the same

ABSTRACT

Multi-semiconductor vertical memory strings, strings of memory cells having individually biasable channel regions, arrays incorporating such strings and methods for forming and accessing such strings are provided. For example non-volatile memory devices are disclosed that utilize NAND strings of serially-connected non-volatile memory cells. One such string can include two or more serially connected non-volatile memory cells each having a channel region. Each memory cell of the two or more serially connected non-volatile memory cells shares a common control gate and each memory cell of the two or more serially connected non-volatile memory cells is configured to receive an individual bias to its channel region.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates generally to semiconductor memories and,in particular, in one or more embodiments, the present disclosurerelates to NAND memory.

BACKGROUND

Memory devices are typically provided as internal, semiconductor,integrated circuits in computers or other electronic devices. There aremany different types of memory including random-access memory (RAM),read only memory (ROM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), synchronousdynamic random access memory (SDRAM), and flash memory.

Flash memory devices have developed into a popular source ofnon-volatile memory for a wide range of electronic applications. Flashmemory devices typically use a one-transistor memory cell that allowsfor high memory densities, high reliability, and low power consumption.Changes in threshold voltage of the cells, through programming (which issometimes referred to as writing) of charge storage nodes (e.g.,floating gates or charge traps) or other physical phenomena (e.g., phasechange or polarization), determine the data value of each cell. Commonuses for flash memory include personal computers, personal digitalassistants (PDAs), digital cameras, digital media players, cellulartelephones, and removable memory modules.

A NAND flash memory device is a common type of flash memory device, socalled for the logical form in which the basic memory cell configurationis arranged and accessed. Typically, the array of memory cells for NANDflash memory devices is arranged such that memory cells of a string areconnected together in series, source to drain.

To meet demands for higher capacity memories, designers continue tostrive for increasing memory density, i.e., the number of memory cellsfor a given area of an integrated circuit die. One way to increasedensity is to reduce the feature size of individual memory cells.However, as device size decreases, the thickness of the tunneldielectric layer must also generally decrease. This, in turn, results inincreasing risk of failure in the tunnel dielectric and charge leakagefrom the storage node. Alternatively, memory density can be increased bystacking multiple layers of memory arrays on top of one another.However, forming semiconductor layers of sufficient quality to serve asactive areas of the arrays becomes problematic and costly. Anotherproposal has been to form NAND arrays vertically around semiconductorpillars, which act as the channel regions of the NAND strings.

For the reasons stated above, and for other reasons stated below whichwill become apparent to those skilled in the art upon reading andunderstanding the present specification, there is a need in the art foralternative memory device architectures.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is top view of a portion of a memory array in accordance with anembodiment to provide frames of reference for the discussion of FIGS.2-7D.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the memory array ofFIG. 1 in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 3A is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the memory array ofFIG. 1 in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 3B is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the memory array ofFIG. 1 in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 4A is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the memory array ofFIG. 1 in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 4B is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the memory array 100showing additional detail of a gate stack formed in FIG. 4A.

FIG. 4C is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the memory array ofFIG. 1 in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 4D depicts conceptually a discrete charge storage node inaccordance with an embodiment.

FIG. 5A is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the memory array ofFIG. 1 in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 5B is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the memory array ofFIG. 1 in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 6A is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the memory array ofFIG. 1 in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 6B is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the memory array ofFIG. 1 in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 7A is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the memory array ofFIG. 1 in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 7B is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the memory array ofFIG. 1 in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 7C is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the memory array ofFIG. 1 in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 7D is a top view of a portion of the memory array of FIG. 1 showingadditional detail of elements of the structure depicted in FIGS. 7A-7C.

FIG. 8A is a top view of another portion of a memory array in accordancewith an embodiment.

FIG. 8B is a cross-sectional view of an interconnect portion of thememory array shown top down in FIG. 8A in accordance with oneembodiment.

FIG. 8C is a cross-sectional view of an interconnect portion of thememory array shown top down in FIG. 8A in accordance with oneembodiment.

FIG. 9A is a top view of a portion of a memory array in accordance withone example embodiment of the routing of access lines.

FIG. 9B is a top view of a portion of a memory array in accordance withone example embodiment of the routing of data lines.

FIG. 9C is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the memory arrayshowing the data lines and access lines in accordance with theembodiment depicted in FIGS. 9A-9B.

FIG. 10 is a simplified block diagram of a memory device coupled to aprocessor as part of an electronic system, according to an embodiment ofthe disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following detailed description, reference is made to theaccompanying drawings that form a part hereof, and in which is shown, byway of illustration, specific embodiments. In the drawings, likenumerals describe substantially similar components throughout theseveral views. Other embodiments may be utilized and structural,logical, and electrical changes may be made without departing from thescope of the present disclosure. The term semiconductor can refer to,for example, a layer of material, a wafer, or a substrate, and includesany base semiconductor structure. “Semiconductor” is to be understood asincluding silicon on sapphire (SOS) technology, silicon on insulator(SOI) technology, thin film transistor (TFT) technology, doped andundoped semiconductors, epitaxial layers of a silicon supported by abase semiconductor structure, as well as other semiconductor structureswell known to one skilled in the art. Furthermore, when reference ismade to a semiconductor in the following description, previous processsteps may have been utilized to form regions/junctions in the basesemiconductor structure. The following detailed description is,therefore, not to be taken in a limiting sense.

Various embodiments describe herein include memory utilizing a verticalstructure of strings of memory cells (e.g., NAND strings of memorycells). In stark contrast to typical vertical NAND structures, memorycells of a NAND string of an embodiment described herein share not acommon channel region, but a common control gate. Because each memorycell of a NAND string in accordance with the embodiments shares a commoncontrol gate, selective activation of individual memory cells of theNAND string is controlled by individually biasing channel regions of thememory cells of the NAND string.

FIG. 1 is top view of a portion of a memory array 100 (e.g., a NANDmemory array) to provide reference to subsequent figures describingmethods of forming a vertical structure in accordance with variousembodiments. Shown in FIG. 1 are isolation regions 102 and access holes104 which will provide frames of reference in describing the subsequentfigures.

FIGS. 2-7D depict a portion of a memory array during various stages offabrication. FIG. 2 depicts a portion of a memory array after severalprocessing steps have occurred. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view takenalong view line 106 of FIG. 1. In general, FIG. 2 may depict asemiconductor 120 upon which portions of future strings of memory cellsare formed. For one embodiment, the semiconductor 120 is amonocrystalline silicon. For a further embodiment, semiconductor 120 isa conductively-doped monocrystalline silicon. Other embodiments mayinclude amorphous silicon, polycrystalline silicon (commonly referred toas polysilicon), or other semiconductor materials. Semiconductor 120 maybe conductively doped to a first conductivity type, e.g., a p-typeconductivity. Semiconductor 120 may represent a common conductivelydoped region (e.g., a common p-well) formed in a semiconductor of adifferent conductivity type.

Formation of the structure of FIG. 2 can include formation of sourceregions 121 in the semiconductor 120. Source regions 121 are regions insemiconductor 120 having a second conductivity type different than thefirst conductivity type, e.g., an n⁺-type conductivity. For oneembodiment, the source regions 121 are n⁺-type regions formed by addingimpurities to portions of the semiconductor 120, e.g., throughimplantation and/or diffusion of n-type dopants, such as arsenic orphosphorus, into the semiconductor 120.

Subsequent formation of the structure depicted in FIG. 2 includesformation of an alternating structure of semiconductor materials of thesecond conductivity type and the first conductivity type. In thisalternating structure, the semiconductor materials of the secondconductivity type will form source/drain regions of individual memorycells while the semiconductor materials of the first conductivity typewill form channel regions of the individual memory cells. Thus, for astring of N memory cells, where N is some integer value greater thanone, the alternating structure will include N+1 instances ofsemiconductor material of the second conductivity type (122 ₀-122 _(n)and N instances of semiconductor material of the first conductivity type(124 ₀-124 _(n-1)). For example, FIG. 2 depicts an alternating structureof semiconductor material 122 of the second conductivity type andsemiconductor material 124 of the first conductivity type to form astring of four memory cells, thus having five instances of semiconductormaterial 122 of the second conductivity type and four instances ofsemiconductor material 124 of the first conductivity type. Semiconductormaterials 122 of the second conductivity type and semiconductormaterials 124 of the first conductivity type are each semiconductormaterials. Semiconductor material 122 of the second conductivity type isa different semiconductor material than the semiconductor material 124of the first conductivity type. Although the figures depict strings offour memory cells, this number was selected to permit a clearerdepiction of the processing involved and the resulting architecture. Theprocesses and architecture described and shown herein may be extended tolarger numbers of memory cells in each string of memory cells, e.g., byincreasing the number of instances of the semiconductor material 122 ofthe second conductivity type and the semiconductor material 124 of thefirst conductivity type contained within the alternating structure. Forexample, a string of thirty two memory cells would contain thirty threeinstances of semiconductor material 122 of the second conductivity typeand thirty two instances of semiconductor material 124 of the firstconductivity type in a repeating pattern.

While each instance of the semiconductor materials 124 of the firstconductivity type may have the same chemical composition, such is notrequired. For purposes of this application, semiconductor materials usedfor the various instances of semiconductor materials 124 of the firstconductivity type will be deemed to be the same if they presentsufficiently similar removal rates during the portion of fabricationdescribed with reference to FIGS. 7A-7D herein that they maintaincontinuity such as depicted in view 125 of FIG. 7D. Similarly, forpurposes of this application, semiconductor materials used for thevarious instances of semiconductor materials 122 of the secondconductivity type will be deemed to be the same if they presentsufficiently similar removal rates during the portion of fabricationdescribed with reference to FIGS. 7A-7D herein that they form discretesource/drain regions such as depicted in view 127 of FIG. 7D.

For one embodiment, the instances of semiconductor materials 122 of thesecond conductivity type include formation of an epitaxial silicon dopedwith germanium (Ge). For example, the germanium doping may be carriedout using germanium tetrahydride (GeH₄) while growing epitaxial silicon.For a further embodiment, the epitaxial silicon doped with germanium isa growth of a silicon-germanium (Si_(x)Ge_(1-x)) alloy.Silicon-germanium alloy can be grown epitaxially on silicon. For oneembodiment, the silicon-germanium alloy contains approximately 20 at %germanium or more, e.g., 0<=x<=0.8. For a still further embodiment, theepitaxial silicon doped with germanium is further conductively dopedwith an n-type impurity, such as arsenic (Ar) or phosphorous (P). Suchconductive doping may occur during or after formation of thesemiconductor material 122 of the second conductivity type.

For one embodiment, the instances of semiconductor materials 124 of thefirst conductivity type include formation of a p-type polysilicon. Forexample, formation may include a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) ofpolysilicon doped with a p-type impurity, such as boron (B). Suchconductive doping may occur during or after formation of thesemiconductor material 124 of the first conductivity type.

For one embodiment, the instances of semiconductor material 122 of thesecond conductivity type may each have a thickness of approximately 200Å while the instances of semiconductor material 124 of the firstconductivity type may each have a thickness of approximately 400 Å. Inthis manner, a string of 32 memory cells would be approximately 2 μm.

Following formation of the alternating structure of semiconductormaterials 122 of the second conductivity type and semiconductormaterials 124 of the first conductivity type, a subsequent semiconductormaterial 126 of the first conductivity type is formed. Semiconductormaterial 126 of the first conductivity type may include the samesemiconductor material as used for semiconductor materials 124 of thefirst conductivity type, i.e., it may have a similar removal rate.However, continuity of semiconductor material 126 of the firstconductivity type is not required following the processing describedwith reference to FIGS. 7A-7D, and thus a different semiconductormaterial may also be used. Following formation of the semiconductormaterial 126 of the first conductivity type, a protective dielectric 128is formed. The protective dielectric 128 may generally be one or moredielectric materials. Some example dielectric materials for protectivedielectric 128 include silicon oxides (SiO_(x)), silicon nitrides(SiN_(x)) and silicon oxynitrides (SiO_(x)N_(y)).

FIG. 3A is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the memory array 100taken along view line 106 of FIG. 1. In FIG. 3A, trenches 130 are formedthrough the protective dielectric 128 and into the source regions 121,i.e., through the semiconductor material 126 of the first conductivitytype, and the alternating structure of semiconductor materials 122 ofthe second conductivity type and semiconductor materials 124 of thefirst conductivity type. In at least one embodiment, the trenches 130should not extend through the source regions 121 so conductivity can bemaintained between portions of the source regions 121 on opposing sidesof the trenches 130. Maintaining conductivity between portions of thesource regions 121 on opposing sides of the trenches allows memory cellsto be formed on each side of the trenches 130 using a shared sourceregion 121. FIG. 3B is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the memoryarray 100 taken along view line 112 of FIG. 1, showing removal of theprotective dielectric 128, the semiconductor material 126 of the firstconductivity type, the alternating structure of semiconductor materials122 of the second conductivity type and semiconductor materials 124 ofthe first conductivity type, and a portion of the source region 121.

FIG. 4A is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the memory array 100taken along view line 106 of FIG. 1. Several processing steps haveoccurred between the structure depicted in FIG. 3A and the structuredepicted in FIG. 4A. In particular, gate stacks for future memory cellshave been formed. The gate stacks include a first dielectric 132 formedon surfaces of the trenches 130, a discrete charge storage node 134formed on the first dielectric 132, a second dielectric 136 formed onthe discrete charge storage node 134, and a conductor 138 filling aremainder of the trenches 130. The first dielectric 132 forms a tunneldielectric for the memory cells while the second dielectric 136 forms aninterlayer dielectric for the memory cells, isolating the discretecharge storage node 134 from the conductor 138, which forms the controlgate for the memory cells. FIG. 4B is a cross-sectional view of aportion of the memory array 100 showing additional detail of the gatestack formed in FIG. 4A. FIG. 4C is a cross-sectional view of a portionof the memory array 100 taken along view line 112 of FIG. 1 followingformation of the gate stacks.

The first dielectric 132 is generally one or more dielectric materials.The first dielectric 132 might be formed, for example, by thermaloxidation of the exposed surfaces of the source regions 121, instancesof the semiconductor materials 122 of the second conductivity type andthe semiconductor materials 124 of the first conductivity type, and thesemiconductor material 126 of the first conductivity type.Alternatively, the first dielectric 132 could be formed by a blanketdeposition of a dielectric material, such as by chemical vapordeposition (CVD) or atomic layer deposition (ALD). Example dielectricmaterials for first dielectric 132 include silicon oxides (SiO_(x)),silicon nitrides (SiN_(s)), silicon oxynitrides (SiO_(x)N_(y)), aluminumoxides (AlO_(x)), hafnium oxides (HfO_(x)), hafnium aluminum oxides(HfAlO_(x)), lanthanum oxides (LaO_(x)), tantalum oxides (TaO_(x)),zirconium oxides (ZrO_(x)), zirconium aluminum oxides (ZrAlO_(x)), etc.,and combinations thereof. Where a deposition is performed, dielectricformed on the upper surface of protective dielectric 128 may be removed,such as by chemical mechanical polishing (CMP), if desired. Note also,where thermal oxidation is used, the first dielectric 132 may not extendto cover exposed surfaces of the protective dielectric 128, as depictedin FIG. 4A, where no further oxidation of protective dielectric 128 ispossible.

The discrete charge storage node 134 is then formed over the firstdielectric 132. The discrete charge storage node 134 is adapted to storecharge locally. In this manner, discrete charge storage node 134 neednot be patterned to separate charge storage nodes of individual memorycells. For example, the discrete charge storage node 134 may be formedof conductive nanodots, i.e., discrete formations of conductive materialcapable of storing a charge. As a further example, the discrete chargestorage node 134 may be formed of discrete formations of metal, such astitanium, tantalum, tungsten, ruthenium, rhodium, platinum, etc., ormetal alloys thereof. Alternatively, the discrete charge storage node134 may be formed of discrete formations, for example, of conductivemetal nitrides, conductive metal oxides or conductive metal silicides,or combinations of any of the foregoing.

FIG. 4D depicts conceptually the discrete charge storage node 134 formedof conductive nanodots 135. Conductive nanodots 135 may be formed, forexample, by CVD, ALD, PVD, etc. The conductive nanodots 135 generallyrepresent discrete formations of conductive material, e.g.,metal-containing material or the like, such that while some individualnanodots 135 may be adjoining one another, there will be portions of thefirst dielectric 132 that will remain exposed between the conductivenanodots 135, and the conductive nanodots 135 will not form a contiguousconductive entity. Accordingly, after the second dielectric 136 isformed over the conductive nanodots 135, it may form on such exposedportions of the first dielectric 132. For one embodiment, a density ofthe conductive nanodots 135 is approximately 1E12/cm² to 1E15/cm². For afurther embodiment, the density of the conductive nanodots 135 isapproximately 1E13/cm². For one embodiment, the conductive nanodots 135have a thickness of approximately 20 Å+/−10 Å (2 nm+/−1 nm). Theconductive nanodots 135 collectively define the discrete charge storagenode 134.

The second dielectric 136 is then formed over the discrete chargestorage node 134. The second dielectric 136 is generally one or moredielectric materials. For example, the second dielectric 136 may includeone or more layers of dielectric materials including high-K dielectricmaterials. Example high-K dielectric materials for intergate dielectric320 include aluminum oxides (AlO_(x)), hafnium oxides (HfO_(x)), hafniumaluminum oxides (HfAlO_(x)), hafnium silicon oxides (HfSiO_(x)),lanthanum oxides (LaO_(x)), tantalum oxides (TaO_(x)), zirconium oxides(ZrO_(x)), zirconium aluminum oxides (ZrAlO_(x)), yttrium oxide (Y₂O₃),etc. Other examples for second dielectric 136 include silicon oxides(SiO_(x)), silicon nitrides (SiN_(g)), silicon oxynitrides(SiO_(x)N_(y)) or combinations thereof. For example, the seconddielectric 136 may be an ONO (oxide-nitride-oxide) structure, i.e., aformation of silicon oxide, followed by a formation of silicon nitride,and followed by another formation of silicon oxide.

The conductor 138 is formed over the second dielectric 136 to fill thetrenches 130. In general, the conductor 138 includes one or moreconductive materials. For one embodiment, the conductor 138 contains aconductively-doped polysilicon. For another embodiment, the conductor138 contains a metal-containing material. For a further embodiment, theconductor 138 includes a metal-containing material on polysilicon, e.g.,a refractory metal silicide formed on a conductively-doped polysilicon.The metals of chromium (Cr), cobalt (Co), hafnium (Hf), molybdenum (Mo),niobium (Nb), tantalum (Ta), titanium (Ti), tungsten (W), vanadium (V),zirconium (Zr), and metal nitrides (including, for example, titaniumnitride, tantalum nitride, tantalum carbon nitride, tungsten nitride)for metal gates are generally recognized as refractory metal materials.For another embodiment, the conductor 138 contains multiplemetal-containing materials, e.g., a titanium nitride (TiN) barrier overthe second dielectric 136, titanium (Ti) as an adhesion material overthe barrier, and tungsten (W) over the adhesion material. As depicted inFIG. 4A, excess conductor 138 may be partially or fully removed from anupper surface of the structure, such as by CMP. Furthermore, althoughnot depicted in FIG. 4A, formations of the first dielectric 132,discrete charge storage node 134 and second dielectric 136 may extendover the upper surface of the protective dielectric 128 as thisconfiguration would not interfere with the isolation of individualmemory cells or strings of memory cells.

FIG. 5A is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the memory array 100taken along view line 108 of FIG. 1. In FIG. 5A, isolation regions 102are formed orthogonal to the trenches 130, and thus the conductors 138.Formation of isolation regions 102 may include formation of trenchesthrough the protective dielectric 128, the semiconductor material 126 ofthe first conductivity type, the alternating structure of semiconductormaterials 122 of the second conductivity type and semiconductormaterials 124 of the first conductivity type, and into the sourceregions 121. Formation of the trenches for isolation regions 102 furthersegments the gate stacks of FIG. 4A to define future individual NANDstrings. The trenches for isolation regions 102 extend below theconductors 138 depicted in FIG. 4A, such as to isolate individualstrings of memory cells, but do not extend below the source regions 121,such as to maintain conductivity of the shared source regions 121. Thesetrenches are then filled with a dielectric material to form theisolation regions 102. FIG. 5B is a cross-sectional view of a portion ofthe memory array 100 taken along view line 112 of FIG. 1, showing theextension of the isolation regions 102 below the conductor 138 and intothe source region 121. It can be seen from the figures that theconductor 138 would be segmented by these isolation regions 102, havingtwo instances of first dielectric 132, discrete charge storage node 134and second dielectric 136 on two opposing sides (see FIG. 4A), and twoinstances of isolation regions 102 on another two opposing sides (seeFIG. 5B), leaving only an upper surface exposed. Such a structure woulddefine two future NAND strings on opposing sides of a conductor 138.

FIG. 6A is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the memory array 100taken along view line 106 of FIG. 1. In FIG. 6A, an access hole 104 isformed between conductors 138. The access hole 104 is formed through theprotective dielectric 128, the semiconductor material 126 of the firstconductivity type, and the alternating structure of semiconductormaterials 122 of the second conductivity type and semiconductormaterials 124 of the first conductivity type. The access hole 104 mayextend to a surface of the semiconductor 120 (as shown in FIG. 6A), butonly needs to extend far enough to expose surfaces of the first instanceof the semiconductor material 122 ₀ of the second conductivity type.FIG. 6B is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the memory array 100taken along view line 110 of FIG. 1 showing additional access holes 104.To aid symmetry of the subsequent removal of portions of thesemiconductor materials 122 of the second conductivity type, it may bedesirable to position the access holes 104 at intersections of linesrunning parallel to edges of the isolation regions 102, such as shown bythe intersection of view lines 106 and 110 of FIG. 1.

The access holes 104 provide access to the instances of semiconductormaterials 122 of the second conductivity type and semiconductormaterials 124 of the first conductivity type for a subsequent selectiveremoval process. The purpose of this selective removal process is todefine individual memory cells by defining discrete source/drain regions(from semiconductor materials 122 of the second conductivity type) forindividual memory cells while maintaining conductivity of channelregions (semiconductor materials 124 of the second conductivity type)shared by more than one memory cell. Because the semiconductor materials122 of the second conductivity type are a different semiconductormaterial than the semiconductor materials 124 of the first conductivitytype, a single removal process, e.g., an isotropic removal process, canbe utilized to selectively remove semiconductor materials 122 of thesecond conductivity type at a faster rate than semiconductor materials124 of the first conductivity type. This permits the formation ofdiscrete portions of semiconductor material 122 of the secondconductivity type while maintaining continuity of semiconductor material124 of the first conductivity type. For example, a wet etch processhaving a higher selectivity to the semiconductor material 122 of thesecond conductivity type over the semiconductor material 124 of thefirst conductivity type may be used.

FIG. 7A is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the memory array 100taken along view line 106 of FIG. 1. FIG. 7B is a cross-sectional viewof a portion of the memory array 100 taken along view line 110 ofFIG. 1. FIG. 7C is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the memoryarray 100 taken along view line 108 of FIG. 1. FIGS. 7A-7C depict themore extensive removal of the semiconductor materials 122 of the secondconductivity type. It is noted that semiconductor materials 124 of thefirst conductivity type may show no significant removal where thedifference in removal rates is large. The choice of removal process orchemicals for a wet etch will depend upon the choice of materials in thealternating structure. However, selective removal processes are wellunderstood in the art. Following removal, the voids formed by removal ofsemiconductor material 122 of the second conductivity type may be filledwith a dielectric material. Because of the complex and narrow voidstructure formed, a more penetrating dielectric material, such as formedby a spin-on dielectric process where a fluid precursor is applied to asurface and allowed to penetrate the openings before curing, may beused. However, because voids are inherently dielectric in nature,completely filling the voids may not be required.

FIG. 7D is a top view of a portion of the memory array 100 showingadditional detail of elements of the structure depicted in FIGS. 7A-7C.View 123 of FIG. 7D depicts a portion of the geometry of an instance ofa semiconductor material 122 of the second conductivity type or aninstance of a semiconductor material 124 of the first conductivity typeprior to the removal process described with reference to FIGS. 7A-7C.View 125 of FIG. 7D depicts a portion of the geometry of an instance ofa semiconductor material 124 of the first conductivity type after theremoval process described with reference to FIGS. 7A-7C. View 125 showsthat while the access holes 104 may become enlarged by the removal of aportion of the semiconductor material 124 of the first conductivitytype, continuity is maintained. View 127 of FIG. 7D depicts a portion ofthe geometry of an instance of a semiconductor material 122 of thesecond conductivity type after the removal process described withreference to FIGS. 7A-7C. View 127 shows that sufficient portions of thesemiconductor material 122 of the second conductivity type are removedto form discrete portions separated from one another. In this manner, aninstance of semiconductor material 124 of the first conductivity typeforming a channel region for one memory cell can also form a channelregion for other memory cells such that a single contact to an instanceof semiconductor material 124 of the first conductivity type canfacilitate biasing of channel regions for more than one memory cell.Similarly, by separating an instance of semiconductor material 122 ofthe second conductivity type into discrete portions, individual memorycells associated with an instance of semiconductor material 124 of thefirst conductivity type can be separated from one another. The discreteportions of semiconductor material 122 of the second conductivity typerepresent individual source/drain regions for the memory cells.

At this stage, individual memory cells are now defined. In particular, amemory cell includes the conductor 138 as its control gate, the seconddielectric 136 as an intergate dielectric, a portion of the discretecharge storage node 134 as its storage node (i.e., that portion betweenan associated instance of semiconductor material 124 of the firstconductivity type and the conductor 138), the first dielectric 132 asits tunnel dielectric, an instance of semiconductor material 124 of thefirst conductivity type (e.g., 124 ₀) as its channel, an instance ofsemiconductor material 122 of the second conductivity type (e.g., 122 ₀)as a first source/drain region, and another instance of semiconductormaterial 122 of the second conductivity type (e.g., 122 ₁) as a secondsource/drain region. A NAND string of serially-connected non-volatilememory cells includes those memory cells connected source to drain, andlocated between a source region 121 and the semiconductor material 126of the first conductivity type. Memory cells may be formed on opposingsides of a conductor 138 as depicted in FIG. 7A, thus defining two NANDstrings of serially-connected non-volatile memory cells.

The memory cells of a NAND string of FIG. 7A share a common controlgate. Accordingly, to access individual memory cells of the string,their channel regions are selectively biased. To read a target memorycell of such a NAND string, all unselected memory cells of the stringare activated regardless of their stored data value, while the targetmemory cell is selectively activated depending upon its stored datavalue. For example, if a memory cell having a channel region formed bysemiconductor material 124 ₁ of the first conductivity type is thetarget memory cell, reading a data value might include applying a firstpotential to the conductor 138, e.g., a read voltage of some potentialbetween a threshold voltage range representative of a first data value,such as a logical 1, and a threshold voltage range representative of asecond data value, such as a logical 0. Reading the data value mightfurther include applying a second potential, e.g. a ground potentialVss, to the semiconductor material 124 ₁ of the first conductivity typesuch that the target memory cell would be activated if the charge storedin its portion of the discrete charge storage node 134 represents thefirst data value and deactivated if the charge stored in its portion ofthe discrete charge storage node 134 represents the second data value.Remaining semiconductor materials 124 of the first conductivity typeassociated with the same conductor 138, e.g., semiconductor materials124 ₀, 124 ₂ and 124 _(n-1) of FIG. 7A, would receive a third potentialsufficient to activate the remaining memory cells of the NAND stringregardless of the charge stored in their portions of the discrete chargestorage node 134. In this manner, the conductance between a sourceregion 121 and an associated last instance 122 _(n) of material of thesecond conductivity type will depend only on a data value of the targetmemory cell. By precharging a data line (not shown in FIG. 7A) orapplying a current to the data line coupled to the last instance 122_(n) of material of the second conductivity type, for example, a voltagechange in the data line will be representative of the data value of thetarget memory cell. While the foregoing example related to a two-statememory cell, multi-level memory is well known where more than two datavalues may be represented on a single memory cell, such as by definingmore than two mutually exclusive ranges of threshold voltages, eachcorresponding to one of the data values. Typically, the number of datavalues that may be represented by a memory cell is some power of two.Data schemes using some number of mutually exclusive threshold voltageranges that is not a power of two are also known. However, thisdisclosure is not limited or dependent upon a particular number of datavalues that may be represented by a memory cell.

Writing data values to individual memory cells, or erasing memory cellswould utilize the same concepts, e.g., selectively applying potentialsto conductors 138, data lines (not shown in FIG. 7A) and semiconductormaterials 124 of the first conductivity type. For write operations toNAND strings of serially-connected non-volatile memory cells, it istypical to use differing biases to different portions of the NANDstrings to reduce coupling between adjacent charge storage nodes tomitigate disturb. In traditional NAND memory, this generally involvesdeveloping different channel potentials through the application ofdiffering access line potentials. However, control is limited as thechannel regions are formed of a contiguous semiconductor material.Utilizing embodiments described herein, each channel region can beindividually biased as they are separated from one another by thesemiconductor materials 122 of the second conductivity type, i.e., theyare discrete formations of semiconductor materials 124 of the firstconductivity type on opposing sides an instance of semiconductormaterial 122 of the second conductivity type. Such individual biasingmay facilitate increased flexibility in reducing adverse coupling ofcharge storage nodes during write operations.

While semiconductor materials 124 of the first conductivity type locatedbetween two conductors 138 represent a single contiguous instance ofsemiconductor material 124, semiconductor materials 124 on opposingsides of a conductor 138 represent isolated instances of semiconductormaterial 124, i.e., there is no connectivity between semiconductormaterial 124 on one side of a conductor and semiconductor material 124on the opposing side of the conductor as these materials have beenisolated by the formation of the trenches 130 of FIG. 3A. Thus, a singleconductor 138 extending between two isolation regions 102 may have twoNAND strings formed on opposing sides of the conductor 138 in certainembodiments. In such a configuration, the two NAND strings would share acommon conductor 138 as well as a common source region 121, but wouldutilize different data lines (see FIG. 9C).

To bias the individual channel regions (semiconductor materials 124),connections are made to each channel region. FIG. 8A is a top view ofanother portion of the memory array 100 showing one example of thesechannel contacts. Channel contacts 140 are formed to each connect to adifferent channel region such that each channel region is connected toone of the channel contacts 140. Because a gate stack (not shown in FIG.8A) is formed to extend between the isolation region 142 and eachadjacent isolation region 102, each grouping of channel contacts 140 isisolated from other groupings of channel contacts 140.

FIG. 8B is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the memory array 100taken along view line 144 of FIG. 8A. As depicted in FIG. 8B, a channelcontact 140 _(n-1) is formed to be in contact with the semiconductormaterial 124 _(n-1) of the first conductivity to provide connectivity toall channel regions associated with the semiconductor material 124_(n-1) located between two adjacent conductors 138. As further depictedin FIG. 8B, a channel contact 140 ₁ is formed to be in contact with thesemiconductor material 124 ₁ of the first conductivity to provideconnectivity to all channel regions associated with the semiconductormaterial 124 ₁ located between the two adjacent conductors 138.

FIG. 8C is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the memory array 100taken along view line 146 of FIG. 8A. As depicted in FIG. 8C, a channelcontact 140 ₂ is formed to be in contact with the semiconductor material124 ₂ of the first conductivity to provide connectivity to all channelregions associated with the semiconductor material 124 ₂ located betweenthe two adjacent conductors 138. As further depicted in FIG. 8C, achannel contact 140 ₀ is formed to be in contact with the semiconductormaterial 124 ₀ of the first conductivity to provide connectivity to allchannel regions associated with the semiconductor material 124 ₀ locatedbetween the two adjacent conductors 138. Although not depicted in thefigures, similar connections may be used for connecting to the sourceregions 121.

Each channel contact 140 ₀-140 _(n-1) of a grouping providesconnectivity to one of the semiconductor materials 124 of the firstconductivity type located between two adjacent conductors 138, whichprovides the ability to individually bias the channel regions of memorycells of each NAND strings, noting that two memory cells sharing thesame semiconductor material 124 of the first conductivity type, i.e.,two memory cells formed on the facing sides of the two conductors 138,would receive the same channel bias. The channel contacts 140 may beformed, for example, by forming a contact hole extending to at leastexpose a surface of the desired instance of semiconductor material 124of the first conductivity type, forming a dielectric material on thesurfaces of the contact hole, performing an anisotropic removal of thedielectric material to leave dielectric spacers 148 on sidewalls of thecontact hole, and then filling the contact hole with one or moreconductive materials to form a conductor 150. Selection of dielectricand conductive materials can follow similar guidance as discussed abovewith reference to the first dielectric 132, second dielectric 136 andconductor 138, for example.

Forming contacts holes of varying depths for channel contacts 140 may beperformed by forming a hard mask defining all of the contact holes, thenperforming a removal process, e.g., an etch process, to extend eachcontact hole to at least expose the top semiconductor material 124 ofthe first conductivity type (e.g., semiconductor material 124 _(n-1) ofFIGS. 8B-8C). A second mask is then formed to cover all but one contacthole of each grouping, e.g., contact hole for channel contact 140 ₀ ofFIG. 8C. A second removal process is then performed to extend thiscontact hole to at least expose the next semiconductor material 124 ofthe first conductivity type (e.g., semiconductor material 124 ₂ of FIGS.8B-8C). A portion of the second mask is then removed to expose oneadditional contact hole of each grouping, e.g., contact hole for channelcontact 140 ₁ of FIG. 8B. A subsequent removal process is then performedto extend this contact hole to at least expose the next semiconductormaterial 124 of the first conductivity type (e.g., semiconductormaterial 124 ₂ of FIGS. 8B-8C), and extend the prior contact hole (e.g.,contact hole for channel contact 140 ₀ of FIG. 8C) to at least exposethe next semiconductor material 124 of the first conductivity type(e.g., semiconductor material 124 ₁ of FIGS. 8B-8C). This process isthen repeated until each contact hole of a grouping is formed to atleast expose its corresponding semiconductor material 124. Thedielectric spacers 148 and conductors 150 may then be formed in eachcontact hole concurrently. It is clear that this process could beextended to more than four channel contacts 140. Similarly, other meansof connecting to the individual instances of semiconductor materials 124of the first conductivity type may be envisioned.

In addition to individually biasing channel regions of the NAND strings,control gates and source/drain regions may similarly be selectivelybiased. FIG. 9A is a top view of a portion of the memory array 100showing an example of the routing of access lines 156 (e.g., word lines)for connection to control gate contacts 154, which may represent anupper surface of conductors 138 or a contact plug or similar conductivestructure (see, e.g., data line contacts 152 of FIG. 9C) connecting theconductors 138 to an access line 156. FIG. 9B is a top view of a portionof the memory array 100 showing an example of the routing of data lines160 for connection to data line contacts 152 to connect to source/drainregions (semiconductor materials 122 _(n) of the second conductivitytype) of the NAND strings. The routing of access lines 156 shows aweaving pattern to permit the unobstructed formation of the data linecontacts 152. Other patterns of access lines 156 and data lines 160 maybe used provided that individual NAND strings may be accessed throughappropriate decoding.

FIG. 9C is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the memory array 100taken along view line 158 of FIGS. 9A and 9B. FIG. 9C depicts the accessline 156 formed in contact with the conductors 138. FIG. 9C furtherdepicts the data line contacts 152 extending to be in contact with afirst region 162 of the second conductivity type and a second region 164of the second conductivity type. The regions 162 and 164 of the secondconductivity type provide connection between the data line contact 152and the last source/drain region (semiconductor material 122 _(n) of thesecond conductivity type in FIG. 9C) of an associated NAND string. Thesecond region 164 of the second conductivity type may have a higherconductivity than the first region 162 of the second conductivity type,e.g., an n⁺⁺-type conductivity versus an n⁺-type conductivity, thusproviding a graded junction. While the data line contact 152 couldextend to be in direct contact with the semiconductor material 122 _(n)of the second conductivity type, it is believed that the graded junctionwill reduce the junction capacitance of the data line 160 and willadditionally improve the breakdown voltage of the junction, thusallowing higher voltages to be applied. Formation of the data linecontacts 152 may follow the guidance with respect to the channelcontacts 140, i.e., formation of contact holes, formation of dielectricspacers 166 on sidewalls of the contact holes, and filling a remainderof the contact holes with one or more conductive materials 168.Formation of the access lines 156 and data lines 160 may follow theguidance with respect to conductor 138, i.e., access lines 156 and datalines 160 generally contain one or more conductive materials.

FIG. 10 is a simplified block diagram of a memory device 174, as oneexample of an integrated circuit device, in communication with (e.g.,coupled to) a processor 172 as part of an electronic system, accordingto an embodiment of the disclosure. Some examples of electronic systemsinclude personal computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs), digitalcameras, digital media players, digital recorders, games, appliances,vehicles, wireless devices, cellular telephones and the like. Theprocessor 172 may be, for example, a memory controller or other externalprocessor for use in the control and access of the memory device 174.

Memory device 174 includes an array of memory cells 100. This memoryarray 100 has an architecture in accordance with an embodiment of thedisclosure utilizing NAND strings of serially-connected non-volatilememory cells sharing a common control gate.

A first decode circuitry (e.g., X decoder) 186, a second decodecircuitry (e.g., Y decoder) 188, and a third decode circuitry (e.g., Zdecoder) 190 are provided to decode address signals. Address signals arereceived and decoded to access memory array 100. The first decodecircuitry 186 is used to apply appropriate bias conditions to thevarious channel regions of the NAND strings during access operations.The second decode circuitry 188 is used to apply appropriate biasconditions to various access lines during access operations. The thirddecode circuitry 190 is used to apply appropriate bias conditions tovarious data lines during access operations and select data lines forsensing. Access operations include read operations (including verifyoperations), write operations and erase operations.

Memory device 174 also includes input/output (I/O) control circuitry 176to manage input of commands, addresses and data to the memory device 174as well as output of data and status information from the memory device174. An address register 178 is coupled between I/O control circuitry176 and first decode circuitry 186, second decode circuitry 188 andthird decode circuitry 190 to latch the address signals prior todecoding. A command register 184 is coupled between I/O controlcircuitry 176 and control logic 182 to latch incoming commands. Controllogic 182 controls access to the memory array 100 in response to thecommands and generates status information for the external processor172. The control logic 182 is coupled to first decode circuitry 186,second decode circuitry 188 and third decode circuitry 190 to controlthe first decode circuitry 186, second decode circuitry 188 and thirddecode circuitry 190 in response to the addresses.

Control logic 182 is also coupled to a cache register 194. Cacheregister 194 latches data, either incoming or outgoing, as directed bycontrol logic 182 to temporarily store data while the memory array 100is busy writing or reading, respectively, other data. During a writeoperation, data is passed from the cache register 194 to data register192 for transfer to the memory array 100; then new data is latched inthe cache register 194 from the I/O control circuitry 176. During a readoperation, data is passed from the cache register 194 to the I/O controlcircuitry 176 for output to the external processor 172; then new data ispassed from the data register 192 to the cache register 194. A statusregister 180 is coupled between I/O control circuitry 176 and controllogic 182 to latch the status information for output to the processor172.

Memory device 174 receives control signals at control logic 182 fromprocessor 172 over a control link 198. The control signals may include,for example, a chip enable CE#, a command latch enable CLE, an addresslatch enable ALE, and a write enable WE#. Memory device 174 receivescommand signals (which represent commands), address signals (whichrepresent addresses), and data signals (which represent data) fromprocessor 172 over a multiplexed input/output (I/O) bus 196 and outputsdata to processor 172 over I/O bus 196.

Specifically, the commands are received over input/output (I/O) pins[7:0] of I/O bus 196 at I/O control circuitry 176 and are written intocommand register 184. The addresses are received over input/output (I/O)pins [7:0] of bus 196 at I/O control circuitry 176 and are written intoaddress register 178. The data are received over input/output (I/O) pins[7:0] for an 8-bit device or input/output (I/O) pins [15:0] for a 16-bitdevice at I/O control circuitry 176 and are written into cache register194. The data are subsequently written into data register 192 forprogramming memory array 100. For another embodiment, cache register 194may be omitted, and the data are written directly into data register192. Data are also output over input/output (I/O) pins [7:0] for an8-bit device or input/output (I/O) pins [15:0] for a 16-bit device.

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that additionalcircuitry and signals can be provided, and that the memory device ofFIG. 10 has been simplified. It should be recognized that thefunctionality of the various block components described with referenceto FIG. 10 may not necessarily be segregated to distinct components orcomponent portions of an integrated circuit device. For example, asingle component or component portion of an integrated circuit devicecould be adapted to perform the functionality of more than one blockcomponent of FIG. 10. Alternatively, one or more components or componentportions of an integrated circuit device could be combined to performthe functionality of a single block component of FIG. 10.

Additionally, while specific I/O pins are described in accordance withpopular conventions for receipt and output of the various signals, it isnoted that other combinations or numbers of I/O pins may be used in thevarious embodiments.

CONCLUSION

Memory devices have been described utilizing NAND strings ofserially-connected non-volatile memory cells. The strings include two ormore serially connected memory cells each having a channel region. Eachmemory cell of the two or more serially connected memory cells shares acommon control gate and each memory cell of the two or more seriallyconnected memory cells is configured to receive an individual bias toits channel region. The memory cells of such a string can have channelregions formed of a first semiconductor material of a first conductivitytype and source/drain regions formed of a second semiconductor materialof a second conductivity type. Accessing the memory cells of string caninclude individually biasing the channel regions of the memory cellswhile receiving a common control gate bias.

Although specific embodiments have been illustrated and describedherein, it will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the artthat any arrangement that is calculated to achieve the same purpose maybe substituted for the specific embodiments shown. Many adaptations ofthe embodiments will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art.Accordingly, this application is intended to cover any adaptations orvariations of the embodiments. It is manifestly intended that theembodiments be limited only by the following claims and equivalentsthereof

1. A string of memory cells, comprising: two or more serially connectedmemory cells each having a channel region; wherein the two or moreserially connected memory cells share a control gate that is common toeach of the two or more serially connected memory cells; and whereineach memory cell of the two or more serially connected memory cells isconfigured to receive an individual bias to its channel region.
 2. Thestring of claim 1, further comprising: wherein the channel regions areformed of semiconductor material of a first conductivity type; whereinthe channel regions are separated from each other by source/drainregions formed of semiconductor material of a second conductivity type.3. The string of claim 2, wherein the semiconductor material of thefirst conductivity type is a different semiconductor material than thesemiconductor material of the second conductivity type.
 4. The string ofclaim 2, wherein the semiconductor material of the first conductivitytype forming one of the channel regions further forms a channel regionof a memory cell of at least one additional string of serially-connectedmemory cells.
 5. The string of claim 2, wherein each channel region isformed of the same semiconductor material of the first conductivity typeand each source/drain region is formed of the same semiconductormaterial of the second conductivity type.
 6. The string of claim 5,wherein each channel region is formed of semiconductor material of thefirst conductivity type having a first chemical composition and eachsource/drain region is formed of semiconductor material of the secondconductivity type having a second chemical composition, wherein thefirst chemical composition is different than the second chemicalcomposition.
 7. The string of claim 6, wherein the semiconductormaterial of the first conductivity type is a p-type polysilicon andwherein the semiconductor material of the second conductivity type is ann-type epitaxial silicon doped with germanium.
 8. The string of claim 7,wherein the epitaxial silicon doped with germanium is asilicon-germanium alloy.
 9. The string of claim 1, wherein the two ormore serially connected memory cells are formed vertically over a sourceregion of the second conductivity type.
 10. The string of claim 1,wherein the two or more serially connected memory cells share a discretecharge storage node adapted to store charge locally.
 11. The string ofclaim 10, wherein discrete charge storage node comprises a plurality ofdiscrete formations of conductive material capable of storing a chargeand wherein the discrete charge storage node does not form a contiguousconductive entity.
 12. The string of claim 1, wherein the string is aNAND string of non-volatile memory cells.
 13. A string ofserially-connected memory cells, comprising: an alternating structure ofsemiconductor materials of a first conductivity type and semiconductormaterials of a second conductivity type formed vertically, wherein thealternating structure comprises instances of semiconductor material ofthe first conductivity type and instances of semiconductor material ofthe second conductivity type; a discrete charge storage node adjacent asidewall of the alternating structure; a conductor adjacent the discretecharge storage node; a first dielectric between the discrete chargestorage node and the sidewall of the alternating structure; and a seconddielectric between the discrete charge storage node and the conductor;wherein the instances of semiconductor material of the firstconductivity type form channel regions of the serially-connected memorycells; wherein the instances of semiconductor material of the secondconductivity type form source/drain regions of the serially-connectedmemory cells; and wherein the conductor forms a common control gate ofthe serially-connected memory cells.
 14. The string of claim 13, whereinthe string comprises N serially-connected memory cells, wherein thealternating structure comprises N instances of semiconductor material ofthe first conductivity type and N+1 instances of semiconductor materialof the second conductivity type, and wherein N is some integer valuegreater than one.
 15. The string of claim 13, further comprising: asource region of the second conductivity type connected to the firstinstance of the semiconductor materials of the second conductivity typeof the alternating structure; and a data line connected to a lastinstance of the semiconductor materials of the second conductivity typeof the alternating structure.
 16. The string of claim 13, furthercomprising: an access line connected to the conductor.
 17. The string ofclaim 13, further comprising: a plurality of channel contacts connectedin a one-to-one relationship to the instances of semiconductor materialof the first conductivity type of the alternating structure.
 18. Amemory array, comprising: a first string of N serially-connected memorycells, wherein N is some integer value greater than one, the firststring comprising: a control gate; a discrete charge storage node; analternating structure of semiconductor materials of a first conductivitytype and semiconductor materials of a second conductivity type, whereinthe alternating structure comprises N instances of semiconductormaterial of the first conductivity type and N+1 instances ofsemiconductor material of the second conductivity type; a firstdielectric between the discrete charge storage node and the alternatingstructure; and a second dielectric between the discrete charge storagenode and the control gate; and a second string of N serially-connectedmemory cells, the second string comprising: a control gate; a discretecharge storage node; an alternating structure of semiconductor materialsof the first conductivity type and semiconductor materials of the secondconductivity type, wherein the alternating structure comprises Ninstances of semiconductor material of the first conductivity type andN+1 instances of semiconductor material of the second conductivity type;a first dielectric between the discrete charge storage node and thealternating structure; and a second dielectric between the discretecharge storage node and the control gate; wherein the control gate ofthe first string and the control gate of the second string are a commonconductor.
 19. The memory array of claim 18, wherein the semiconductormaterials of the first conductivity type are a p-type polysilicon andwherein the semiconductor materials of the second conductivity type arean n-type epitaxial silicon doped with germanium.
 20. The memory arrayof claim 18, further comprising a semiconductor region having the secondconductivity type connected to a first instance of the semiconductormaterial of the second conductivity type of the alternating structure ofthe first string of N serially-connected memory cells and connected to afirst instance of the semiconductor material of the second conductivitytype of the alternating structure of the second string of Nserially-connected memory cells.
 21. The memory array of claim 20,wherein the common conductor extends below an upper surface of thesemiconductor region having the second conductivity type, and whereinthe common conductor is isolated from the semiconductor region havingthe second conductivity type by the first and second dielectrics. 22.The memory array of claim 20, further comprising a first data lineconnected to a last instance of the semiconductor material of the secondconductivity type of the alternating structure of the first string of Nserially-connected memory cells, and a second data line connected to alast instance of the semiconductor material of the second conductivitytype of the alternating structure of the second string of Nserially-connected memory cells.
 23. The memory array of claim 18,wherein each instance of semiconductor material of the firstconductivity type of the alternating structure of the first string of Nserially-connected memory cells is isolated from each instance ofsemiconductor material of the first conductivity type of the alternatingstructure of the second string of N serially-connected memory cells, andwherein each instance of semiconductor material of the firstconductivity type of the alternating structure of the first string of Nserially-connected memory cells is shared with at least one other stringof N serially-connected memory cells.
 24. The memory array of claim 18,wherein the alternating structure of the first string of Nserially-connected memory cells is isolated from the alternatingstructure of the second string of N serially-connected memory cells. 25.A memory array, comprising: a first string of N serially-connectedmemory cells, wherein N is some integer value greater than one, thefirst string comprising: a control gate; a discrete charge storage node;an alternating structure of semiconductor materials of a firstconductivity type and semiconductor materials of a second conductivitytype, wherein the alternating structure comprises N instances ofsemiconductor material of the first conductivity type and N+1 instancesof semiconductor material of the second conductivity type; a firstdielectric between the discrete charge storage node and the alternatingstructure; and a second dielectric between the discrete charge storagenode and the control gate; and a second string of N serially-connectedmemory cells, the second string comprising: a control gate; a discretecharge storage node; an alternating structure of semiconductor materialsof the first conductivity type and semiconductor materials of the secondconductivity type, wherein the alternating structure comprises Ninstances of semiconductor material of the first conductivity type andN+1 instances of semiconductor material of the second conductivity type;a first dielectric between the discrete charge storage node and thealternating structure; and a second dielectric between the discretecharge storage node and the control gate; wherein the alternatingstructure of the first string of N serially-connected memory cells andthe alternating structure of the second string of N serially-connectedmemory cells share the N instances of semiconductor material of thefirst conductivity type.
 26. The memory array of claim 25, wherein thesemiconductor materials of the first conductivity type are a p-typepolysilicon and wherein the semiconductor materials of the secondconductivity type are an n-type epitaxial silicon doped with germanium.27. The memory array of claim 25, further comprising: a third string ofN serially-connected memory cells, the third string comprising: acontrol gate; a discrete charge storage node; an alternating structureof semiconductor materials of the first conductivity type andsemiconductor materials of the second conductivity type, wherein thealternating structure comprises N instances of semiconductor material ofthe first conductivity type and N+1 instances of semiconductor materialof the second conductivity type; a first dielectric between the discretecharge storage node and the alternating structure; and a seconddielectric between the discrete charge storage node and the controlgate; wherein the control gate of the second string and the control gateof the third string are a common conductor; and wherein the control gateof the second string and the control gate of the first string aredifferent conductors.
 28. A method of accessing a string ofserially-connected memory cells, the method comprising: biasing acontrol gate common to each memory cell of the string ofserially-connected memory cells; biasing a data line connected to asource/drain region of a memory cell at one end of the string ofserially-connected memory cells; and individually biasing channelregions of the string of serially-connected memory cells, wherein thechannel regions of adjacent memory cells of the string ofserially-connected memory cells are discrete formations of semiconductormaterial.
 29. The method of claim 28, wherein biasing the control gatecomprises biasing the control gate to some potential between a thresholdvoltage range representative of a first data value and a thresholdvoltage range representative of a second data value.
 30. The method ofclaim 29, wherein individually biasing channel regions of the string ofserially-connected memory cells further comprises biasing a channelregion of a target memory cell to a ground potential.
 31. The method ofclaim 28, wherein individually biasing channel regions of the string ofserially-connected memory cells further comprises biasing a channelregion of a target memory cell to a potential such that the targetmemory cell is activated if the target memory cell has a first datavalue while the control gate receives its bias and deactivated if thetarget memory cell has a second data value while the control gatereceives its bias.
 32. The method of claim 31, wherein individuallybiasing channel regions of the string of serially-connected memory cellsfurther comprises biasing channel regions of remaining memory cells ofthe string of serially-connected memory cells to a potential such thateach of the remaining memory cells is activated while the control gatereceives its bias regardless of their respective data values.
 33. Themethod of claim 32, further comprising sensing a voltage change on adata line connected to one end of the string of serially-connectedmemory cells to determine the data value of the target memory cell. 34.The method of claim 28, wherein accessing the string ofserially-connected memory cells comprises an access operation selectedfrom the group consisting of a read operation, a write operation and anerase operation.
 35. A method of forming a string of serially-connectedmemory cells, the method comprising: forming a region of a secondconductivity type in a semiconductor material of a first conductivitytype; forming an alternating structure of semiconductor materials of thesecond conductivity type and semiconductor materials of the firstconductivity type, wherein the alternating structure comprises instancesof semiconductor material of the first conductivity type and instancesof semiconductor material of the second conductivity type, and wherein afirst instance of semiconductor material of the second conductivity typeis connected to the region of the second conductivity type; forming asubsequent semiconductor material of the first conductivity type on thealternating structure; forming a protective dielectric on the subsequentsemiconductor material of the first conductivity type; forming a trenchthrough the protective dielectric and into the region of the secondconductivity type; forming a first dielectric on surfaces of the trench;forming a discrete charge storage node on the first dielectric; forminga second dielectric on the discrete charge storage node; forming aconductor to fill a remainder of the trench; forming isolation regionsorthogonal to the conductor; and selectively removing portions of theinstances of semiconductor material of the second conductivity type ofthe alternating structure to define discrete source/drain regions forthe memory cells of the string of serially-connected memory cells. 36.The method of claim 35, wherein forming an alternating structure ofsemiconductor materials of the second conductivity type andsemiconductor materials of the first conductivity type comprises:forming a first instance of semiconductor material of the secondconductivity type on the region of the second conductivity type; forminga first instance of semiconductor material of the first conductivitytype on the first instance of semiconductor material of the secondconductivity type; forming N−1 subsequent instances of semiconductormaterial of the second conductivity type and semiconductor material ofthe first conductivity type in a repeating pattern; and forming anN+1^(th) instance of semiconductor material of the second conductivitytype on an N^(th) instance of semiconductor material of the firstconductivity type; wherein N is an integer value greater than one. 37.The method of claim 36, wherein forming isolation regions orthogonal tothe conductor comprises forming the isolation regions extending below alevel of the conductor and above a bottom of the region of the secondconductivity type.
 38. The method of claim 35, wherein forming adiscrete charge storage node on the first dielectric comprises formingdiscrete formations of conductive material on the first dielectric. 39.The method of claim 38, wherein forming discrete formations ofconductive material on the first dielectric comprises formingmetal-containing nanodots on the first dielectric.
 40. The method ofclaim 35, wherein selectively removing portions of the instances ofsemiconductor material of the second conductivity type of thealternating structure comprises: forming access holes to expose surfacesof the instances of semiconductor material of the first conductivitytype of the alternating structure and instances of semiconductormaterial of the second conductivity type of the alternating structure;and performing an isotropic removal process selective to thesemiconductor material of the second conductivity type over thesemiconductor material of the first conductivity type.